Don't judge a book by its cover

11:06am Friday 30th May 2008

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I HATE the way we've become so suspicious of each other - for example, a certain section of society thinks every teenager is a potential mugger.

A few years ago I can remember going for a swim at Sale Leisure Centre and, as I made my way to the tram stop I noticed my every move was being watched by a skinhead at the bus stop opposite the baths.

This guy was huge, a good six or seven inches taller than yours truly and he was also in great shape.

Then, he started to follow me. Oh my God, I thought, I'm going to be beaten up or mugged here, or maybe both.

He waited for me in the foyer, fixing me with the hardest of stares. My trepidation turned to panic - what should I do? Should I ignore him and just walk down to the platform?

Luckily, a bloke with a dog, standing outside the tram station, had spotted that something strange was going on. Suddenly he became my best mate and I confided in him, receiving a sympathetic response.

We were then joined by the aforementioned skinhead who told me he meant no harm and promptly walked off towards School Road. I got my tram, my heart thumping like a piece of rave music.

Now I'm the sort of person who always tries to take people as I find them and maybe I'd read this guy all wrong.

If his intentions hadn't been honourable would he have been so obvious in the way he followed me to the station? Had he been a mugger he would have left the scene of the crime sorely disappointed, as I didn't have enough money on me to buy a pint of beer.

I'd like to think we could return to the days when he could pass the time with complete strangers but I can't really see it happening in these increasingly violent times.